2018 McLaren 570S Spider new car review

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2018 McLaren 570S Spider new car review

What is it?

It’s a mobile phone magnet, and the only convertible you can get wearing a McLaren badge at the moment. It is, of course, the 570S Spider, which is part of the British supercar brand’s entry-level Sport Series.

How much does it cost and what do you get?

The 570S Spider is a genuine supercar and comes with a price tag to match, costing from $435,750 (driveaway), making it the second most expensive member of McLaren’s Sport Series range below the luxury-focused 570GT but above the 540C and the 570S coupe on which it is based.

Like the hard top, it comes equipped with a two-seater cockpit cloaked in leather and Alcantara and a digital instrument cluster, keyless entry, climate control and a portrait-style multimedia system with sat nav, digital radio, Bluetooth connectivity and performance apps.

Our particular test vehicle was also fitted with a raft of options that took its sticker price just over $500k, including a sports exhaust system, soft close doors, heated electric seats, a higher-grade Bowers and Wilkens audio system, reversing camera with front and rear parking sensors, a lift kit that raises the front wheels for added ground clearance at low speeds and a searing paint job in Sicilian Yellow Elite with a ‘stealth’ badge kit.

Uniquely the 570S Spider has a retractable folding hard-top roof made from lightweight composite plastics that only adds 46kg more to its kerb weight and which stows on top of the engine in less than 15 seconds.

What's under the bonnet?

Technically, that’s where you’ll put a couple of bags – or even the weekly grocery shopping as we did – as there’s a deep 150L well in its nose.

But under the roof is a 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8 that produces 419kW and 600Nm and drives the rear wheels through a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.

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That’s enough to propel the 570S Spider from 0-100km/h in just 3.2 seconds and on to a top speed of 328km/h with a claimed average fuel consumption of 10.7L/100km – identical figures to the Coupe with the roof closed. It’ll still run to triple figures in the same rapid time with the top down, but will only hit 315km/h due to the added turbulence at that speed – which is impossible in Australia anyway.

What's it like to drive?

To be honest, there is no discernible difference in the way it drives compared to the coupe, which is rare as most convertibles are compromised in their dynamics by a reduction in body rigidity.

But the 570S Spider was designed alongside the coupe from the outset with the ability to match its performance owing to the fact McLaren uses a lightweight, but super-strong carbon-fibre chassis called MonoCell that doesn’t require any additional structural changes to accommodate the open-top configuration.

What that means is the 570S Spider is still a genuine supercar in every conceivable manner with all the performance and you’d expect from a mid-engined machine developed by the road-going division of a Formula One team.

It’s fast – very fast – and beautifully balanced, with steering that is telepathic in its response and feedback and a stronger grip on the road than Tarzan could ever muster swinging from vine to vine. Don’t think for a minute that it’s underpowered, however, as the immense surge of power from the engine can overcome the tyres and make it squirrel under heavy acceleration.

The standard carbon ceramic stoppers offer huge stopping power when you stand on them, but don’t have that much feel at low speeds and squeal under light-pedal action, which can draw even more attention to the drop-top supercar around town.

While it is a beautiful brute in the right environment, the 570S Spider is also completely docile, making it easy to drive anywhere. The suspension is naturally stiff but amazingly compliant, the dual-clutch is seamless in the way it shifts and the engine has plenty of low-end pulling power that allows it to lope around effortlessly.

What's it like inside?

As it is with the driving experience, the 570S Spider’s two-seater cockpit looks and feels like its coupe sibling with the roof in place.

And it’s a great place to sit, with snug but comfortable bucket seats, a thin-rimmed steering wheel that falls perfect to hand, clear digital instruments that change between normal and sports modes and a wide view out of the glasshouse that, all together, creates a supercar experience that is easy to live with.

The proprietary infotainment system with its tile-like interface is simple and easy to navigate, but the screen can be hard to read with the roof down when the sun is shining on it.

As for the rest of the roof-down experience, it only amplifies the supercar experience by exposing those in the cockpit to the big sky above, the wind in your hair, the ear-splitting noise from the engine and the hundreds of phone-wielding car spotters that inevitably crow for a closer look.

Is it safe?

Like all other supercars, any McLaren is too expensive for ANCAP to submit to independent crash testing.

But, considering its handling abilities, it should be able to avoid an accident pretty easily in the right hands.

If not, its carbon fibre construction is designed to be super strong plus there’s four airbags.

Would I buy it?

In a heartbeat. The 570S Spider is a glorious supercar that is in no way compromised by being a convertible. It’s fast and engaging to drive when you tap into its full performance abilities on a fast backcountry road or at a trackday event, yet it is comfortable enough to enjoy cruising along the beachside boulevards.

What else should I consider?

A Porsche 911 Turbo Convertible mixes the same blend of high-end luxury, supercar-like performance and everyday useability to great effect, as does the latest-generation Audi R8 V10 Spyder and the Mercedes-AMG GTC.

If you’re after something a little more relaxed, but still with some punch, then the upcoming Aston Martin DB11 Volante and Bentley Continental GT are also British-built alternatives.